Joined: Nov 2011 Gender: Female Posts: 48 Location: Toronto Canada
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #900 on Jul 9, 2012, 4:22am »
Casimia and bjd: Mission to Paris and Mordechai Richler.
With our fabulous library system, I got lucky and read Mission to Paris on a one week return. It was good, but in my opinion, not Alan Furst’s best….shorter, not at all as much of the feel of Paris during the occupation. Of course, I am biased. I think that The World at Night was his finest novel set in Paris during this period. (This is not a comment re: the novels set in other countries.) Furst is truly a superb writer of the period in the years leading up to and moving into WW2.
So good that you have discovered Mordechai Richler, bjd. I like him.
I’m just going to mention another Canadian author who is brilliant but rarely acknowledged today, Mavis Gallant. If she is given credence, it’s usually as a ‘writer’s writer’. She is now 89, was born and brought up in Montreal and has lived in Paris since the 50’s. She is a very private person. Her short stories, both of Montreal and Paris, are well worth a read.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 3,977 Location: South-West France
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #901 on Jul 9, 2012, 6:50am »
Jazz, I had of course heard of Mordechai Richler, but had just never read anything by him.
And someone gave me a book of Gallant's short stories years ago, but I just couldn't read them.
I finally finished Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall last night. I had stopped for several weeks while I was away but finally got around to it again. It's okay, but I don't think I'll bother with the rest, even though excerpts of the second volume are being published in the NYRB these days.
Joined: Jan 2013 Gender: Female Posts: 373 Location: NOLA,USA
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #902 on Jul 9, 2012, 10:19am »
Thank you so much Jazz.
BJD, I'm curious about your post and why you couldn't read Gallant and why the difficulty with finishing Wolf Hall? (I'm on a waiting list for Wolf Hall ATM.) I ask because I often find myself fairly in sync with your literary tastes and takes.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 3,977 Location: South-West France
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #904 on Jul 10, 2012, 1:59pm »
Casi, I don't remember why I didn't like Gallant -- I guess I just found it depressing and/or boring. Maybe it was just the wrong book at the wrong time. Can't check again because I got rid of the book.
As for Wolf Hall, it's alright. A bit annoying because the author rarely refers to Cromwell by name but just says "he" so it's a bit confusing at times. I did go and read about him and Thomas More on Wikipedia just to get some background. One of the problems is that it's a long book, so I left it behind at times when I was away and didn't get back into it with a lot of enthusiasm.
Or maybe I just read too many detective novels so need some suspense to keep going?
I did read CJ Sansom's books which take place around the same time (reign of Henry 8th) and found them good, so I can't say it's the historical aspect.
Joined: Jan 2013 Gender: Female Posts: 373 Location: NOLA,USA
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #905 on Jul 10, 2012, 2:45pm »
I like historical novels but not one right after the other like that. I'm interested in Francine Du Plexis Grey's new one, The Queen's Lover, but, I know if I read Wolf Hall, I'm going to wait a good bit before launching into another one that quickly. Hopefully Allen Furst's new spy novel will come in after.
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #906 on Jul 17, 2012, 4:27pm »
I'm almost finished reading The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. I highly recommend it for those who enjoy science reading. She was a poor black woman whose cancerous cells were taken without her knowledge in 1951. Her cells thrived and have been using in countless research labs ever since. There are literally billions, if not more, of her cells which have been bought and sold. Yet she and her family both a) didn't know about her cells being taken and b) the impact they have had for the world.
Joined: Oct 2011 Gender: Female Posts: 1,116 Location: UK
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #908 on Jul 25, 2012, 9:06pm »
Finished the Language of Flowers much too quickly - a perfect read at a perfect time for me .
Now gone from the sublime to ridiculous ( and enjoying the ridicuous more ) ......I have finished -The Sense of an Endng - Julian Barnes (OK'ish )
Now I am a few chapters into Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend ( slightly irritating at times but it lives up to its " kid lit for grown ups " reviews ) Again suits my current mood.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 4,271 Location: USA
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #910 on Aug 5, 2012, 1:09pm »
I need to read Invisible Man.
Currently immersed in E.F.Benson's Lucia and Mapp series. Sheer escapism, small town humorous 1920's English small town tempests in teapots.
Benson sets a lot of his stories in Rye, where he lived in Lamb House, renamed Mallards in the books. Good old Googlemaps allows me to stroll down those well-described streets and practically peer into the windows. Miss Mapp had a Garden Room at Mallards from which she on her neighbors, but no such room now. Good old Wickipedia says Garden Room was destroyed by a bomb during WWII.
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #911 on Aug 5, 2012, 5:08pm »
I loved Lucia and Mapp. I must reread it again, as I also have the entire series. Did you see the mini-series which was made in the 80s? Prunella Scales, Geraldine McEwan and Nigel Hawthorne. A complete delight.
I am currently reading a) Dearie a biography of Julia Child and b) A Game of Thrones, the first in the A Song of Fire and Ice series.
I had already requested Wolf Hall from the library, based on mentions in reviews of the sequel -- when I read C. Hitchens' praise. So I thought, oh good.
Just finished skimming through to the end, skipping pages at a time. Eventually she really got on my nerves, not least because the last third of this hefty volume leads up to the execution of a character you've been led to dislike from the beginning. Partly because I found it all is too erudite, self confident, and -- good word bixa -- arch for my taste.
Same thing happened here, I made it 3/4's through and abandon it.
The library came through with Mission To Paris, Allen Furst's new spy thriller. I have to agree with Jazz and her take on it but, I'm enjoying it thus far. His knowledge of the era and Paris is enough to snag me.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 3,977 Location: South-West France
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #913 on Aug 6, 2012, 6:34am »
My fiction reading is heavily influenced by what I find at the library.
They occasionally have new books in their limited English collection and last time I went I found The Last King of England by Julian Rathbone. The story of Harold, last Saxon/Danish king before William the Conqueror, aka William the Bastard, as told by one of Harold's companions/servants who survive the Battle of Hastings and got away. Pretty good historical imagination on the part of the author -- it's difficult to know exactly how accurate it all is and, of course, it's a novel. The point of view also expresses the "victor writes the history" philosophy when describing the behaviour of William and his Norman troops.
Like Lola and Casi, I won't bother with any more Hilary Mantel.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 4,271 Location: USA
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #915 on Aug 9, 2012, 3:05pm »
Joanne, I've been looking at bits of Mapp and Lucia on YouTube. Scales and McEwen might have been born to play those parts. I have a little trouble with Georgie, maybe because having seen him as Georgie III. The costuming is perfect, too. Thank you! I'll have to see if I can order the DVDs from our library.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 4,271 Location: USA
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #917 on Aug 19, 2012, 6:07am »
I'm really enjoying Autobiography of Mark Twain, the fairly recent one where they tried to do it the way he'd intended. After trial and error he hit on the idea of dictating whatever he felt like talking about, past or recent. This avoids the depressing plodding from cradle to grave feeling and makes it more immediate. Also I guess made the task possible. So many of us put off writing our memoirs...
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #919 on Aug 20, 2012, 1:33am »
bjd, I have finished Dearie and really enjoyed it. I had already read My Life in France and As Always, Julia so I was quite with the middle years of her life. Her younger years and later life were filled in for me.
She was a marvelous person by all accounts and I wish I could have met her. It would have been her 100th birthday Aug 15 and I was so pleased to see Google note that.
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #920 on Aug 26, 2012, 2:59pm »
Just finished a "couldn't put it down book", Night Fighter Navigator by Dennis Gosling. Yes, it is a flying book, but not a gungho account but the down to earth, good and bad times. He spent several months on the island of Malta during the height of the siege, when it suffered more bombs than London. That resonated with me as my favourite uncle was killed there at that time.
He writes with great feeling and is obviously a sensitive person, he became a shopkeeper after the war and continues his story right up almost to the present day. The book however is mainly concerned with his wartime experiences, I did not have a dry eye when I finished it.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 25,272 Location: Mexico
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #921 on Aug 26, 2012, 5:22pm »
Thanks for that, Mossie, as your review makes me want to read it, whereas otherwise I'd probably skip right over that title.
Lola, what a good point about stuff we had to read in school. So much of that was thrown at us when we were still at an age of reading for plot (at least on the conscious level), so the good writing got wasted on us, sometimes never to be revisited.
I recently finished At Home by Bill Bryson, which I unreservedly recommend to everyone. It's subtitled "a short history of private life", but that still doesn't cover the book's appeal. Bryson lives in a parsonage in Norfolk. Starting with the view from his attic window and continuing room by room through the rest of the house, he takes us on a historical and geographical journey to show how our living customs and accoutrements came about. These are huge wide loops of what could be called digressions, but what digressions!
Just be careful where you leave the book lying around your house. The family member who picks it up from the chairside table or in the bathroom may be reluctant to give it back so that you can continue reading. It's 500+ pages (with a huge bibliography) and I would have been happy if it had gone on for another 1,000.
Right now I'm indulging in romantic exotica, as I'm a sucker for the kind of things Lisa See writes. Told in the first person, Peony in Love is about a girl in 17th century China who pines away with "love sickness". The others I've read by See are Snow Flower and the Secret Fan & Shanghai Girls. They're all great stories and See's writing never descends to romantic preciousness.
Joined: Jun 2012 Gender: Female Posts: 4,170 Location: Florida
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #923 on Sept 3, 2012, 7:18pm »
I've just learned that Ken Follett's Winter of the World, the second book of his Century trilogy on war, will be released in the U.S. on September 18, so I plan to re-read Fall of Giants so I can get back up to speed before I begin the new book. The story follows five interconnected families - American, German, Russian, English, Welsh - beginning in the early 20th century.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 25,272 Location: Mexico
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #924 on Sept 3, 2012, 7:52pm »
Finished Peony in Love & was surprised to find that it's based on historic literary events & real people. There were parts of the books that were a little belabored, but overall it really held my interest. I appreciated the explanatory section at the end.
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #925 on Sept 4, 2012, 12:39am »
I'm currently reading The Mind's Eye by Dr. Oliver Sacks, which are the stories of people who have lost senses or abilities and how they are still able to triumph. He includes his own case of losing stereoscopic vision because of cancer in one eye. I have several of his other books and I find them fascinating. They are written in an engaging style, never talk down to the reader (okay, sometimes I'm looking up medical terms ) and give me a sense of the miracle of the human mind.
I'm also rereading Contact by Carl Sagan. I often have a couple of books on the go, but they're normally quite different genres. Depends what mood I'm in.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 4,271 Location: USA
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #926 on Sept 4, 2012, 1:25am »
I finished Autobiog of Mark Twain a few days ago, and loved it. What a voice. What an eye.
Stayed up till the wee hours last night with Ordinary Thunderstorms, by William Boyd, based on a rec from Patrick on another forum. Great fun: innocent respected scientist finds himself in a Hitchcock scenario, the Cary Grant part, where he pulls the knife from the just murdered random stranger whose last words are, "Whatever you do, don't...."
I too was skeptical that Boyd could extricate himself from potential cliche morass. But he pulls it off entertainingly, running all over greater London and interacting with characters high and low. Tonight I'll find out whether the virtuous hero is vindicated, or whether the unpleasant hit man catches him and does his worst.
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #927 on Sept 7, 2012, 12:00am »
lola, the Autobiography of Mark Twain sounds wonderful. I think he is one of the greatest American writers ever and think everyone should read him. Actually, he's simply one of the greatest writers and sadly ignored.
I went to the library and took out 4 complete escapist reads. V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton, New York by Edward Rutherfurd, Out of Oz by Gregory Maguire and Legends an anthology of fantasy novellas by well-knowns authors. A total of 2,575 pages to wallow in. I am going to enjoy myself.
Joined: Feb 2009 Gender: Female Posts: 25,272 Location: Mexico
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #928 on Sept 7, 2012, 1:24am »
Ooo, Joanne ~~ you took out books for ME!
I've actually been thinking about starting again at the beginning with Sue Grafton, since it's been so long since I read U is for Undertow.
And Edward Rutherford has covered New York now?! Talking about wallow -- I think I found London a bit much at times, but overall I really like & admire his books.
I haven't even read the third one of the Wicked series yet. Maybe I'll go back & read the first two again.
Re: What is everyone here reading? « Reply #929 on Sept 7, 2012, 1:21pm »
I have most of Sue Grafton's books but in paperback. I'll buy this one later as I do have a bit of a completion fetish with books, much to my husband's dismay. With Grafton, it will be easy - 26 of them.
My favourite by Rutherfurd is Sarum, of course. I'm quite enjoying New York so far, about 200 pages into it - I couldn't get to sleep last night so read late.
Out of Oz is the fourth. A Lion Among Men was the third but I didn't care for it so much. I loved Wicked.
Legends - here's part of the blurb from Goodreads which explains far better than I can
Here they are, the writers and the worlds that have satisfied millions of readers. Each has returned to their compelling special places to tell a new tale that enriches and illuminates their most famous creations, in a big, lavish volume enhanced with color and illustrative materials. Many of the short novels take place at an earlier moment in the history of their worlds, and cast new light on the famous epics. Others fit into the already established patterns of their worlds, but happen offstage from the main action.
Some of the writers are Stephen King, George R.R. Martin, Robert Silverberg (also editor), Ursula Le Guin and Orson Scott Card. It should be a nice, juicy read.
![[Home]](http://static1.grsites.com/user/folders/nowdocking/r3920049/button23550481.png "[Home]")
![[New Topics]](http://images.proboards.com/menu/topics.png "[New Topics]")
![[Help]](http://static1.grsites.com/user/folders/nowdocking/r3920083/button28195714.png "[Help]")
![[Search]](http://static1.grsites.com/user/folders/nowdocking/r3920086/button25710789.png "[Search]")
![[Login]](http://static1.grsites.com/user/folders/nowdocking/r3920112/button20487816.png "[Login]")
![[Register]](http://static1.grsites.com/user/folders/nowdocking/r3920117/button97266159.png "[Register]")
![[Search This Thread]](http://images.proboards.com/search2.gif "[Search This Thread]")
![[Reply]](http://images.proboards.com/buttons/reply.gif "[Reply]")
![[Share Topic]](http://images.proboards.com/new/buttons/share.png "[Share Topic]")
Author
![[Quote]](http://images.proboards.com/buttons/quote.gif "[Quote]")
Logged![[avatar]](http://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-geCedqtD42k/T5nyULl9CqI/AAAAAAAAWGM/1EM9HKLEDUs/s512/IMG_2160.JPG "[avatar]")
![[avatar]](http://images.proboards.com/avatars/paintingbird.gif "[avatar]")
![[avatar]](http://i635.photobucket.com/albums/uu73/nowdocking/books.jpg "[avatar]")
![[avatar]](http://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-OLBmV0-oiAE/T5QtUOEesxI/AAAAAAAAH8o/QViQZLXH_JA/s144/P1000054.JPG "[avatar]")
![[avatar]](http://i635.photobucket.com/albums/uu73/nowdocking/moonatnight.gif "[avatar]")
![[avatar]](http://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h401/slowhand68/moon2.jpg "[avatar]")
![[homepage]](http://images.proboards.com/buttons/www_sm.gif "[homepage]")
![[avatar]](http://i.imgur.com/23lJo.jpg "[avatar]")
![[avatar]](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7137/7524219656_2f4830464c_t.jpg "[avatar]")
) and give me a sense of the miracle of the human mind.